Editing Fort Sam Houston (section)

==Military medicine==
[[File:"Old" Brooke Army Medical Center building.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of the Old Brooke Army Medical Center]]
Fort Sam Houston is known as the "Home of Army Medicine" and "Home of the Combat Medic". At the end of World War II, the Army decided to make Fort Sam Houston its principal medical training facility.<ref name="visitm">"Visit Fort Sam Houston" (description),
VisitMilitaryBases.com, 2007, webpage: {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20191020012700/http://www.visitmilitarybases.com/local163.html VisitMil-163]}}.</ref> In conjunction with this decision came the determination to develop [[Brooke Army Medical Center|Brooke General Hospital]] into one of the Army's premier medical centers.<ref name=visitm/> This combined the capabilities of [[Wilford Hall Medical Center]] located at nearby [[Lackland Air Force Base]] to create the largest medical treatment facility and teaching hospital in the Department of Defense. Construction associated with this transition increased the square footage of the hospital by 50%, including a much larger, variable capacity emergency department, additional surgical suites and recovery facilities, as well as teaching facilities and bed space. Despite the installation transitioning to Air Force control, the command and control of the facility will remain with the Army. The command and other key positions will rotate between the Army and Air Force. Staffing consist of members of both services, as well as a large number of civilians.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sammc.amedd.army.mil/brac.asp |title=BRAC Information |access-date=2011-08-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722180657/http://sammc.amedd.army.mil/brac.asp |archive-date=2011-07-22 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

As of 2011, Fort Sam Houston is the largest and most important military medical training facility in the world.<ref name=army/><ref name=visitm/><ref name="milcity">"Installation Fact Sheet" (Fort Sam Houston), 2007, PDF webpage: [http://militarycityusa.com/PDF/Fort_Sam_Houston_Fact_Sheet_Jan2007.pdf MilCityUSA-FortSH-PDF] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071129094318/http://militarycityusa.com/PDF/Fort_Sam_Houston_Fact_Sheet_Jan2007.pdf |date=2007-11-29 }}: states: "Fort Sam Houston is the largest and most important military medical training facility in the world."</ref><!--UNTAG 30July07: {{Fact|date=February 2007}} --> Military medical training is provided by numerous elements, including Military Education and Training Campus (METC), AMEDD Center and School, Brooke Army Medical Center, US Army Institute of Surgical Research, The Center for Battlefield Health and Trauma, Defense Medical Readiness Training Institute, as well as many smaller organizations.

Known as the brain trust for the AMEDD, the Army Medical Department Center and School annually trains more than 25,000 students attending 170 officer, NCO and enlisted courses in 14 medical specialties. The command maintains several academic affiliations for bachelor's and master's degree programs with major universities such as [[Baylor University]], [[University of Texas]] Health Science Centers at Houston and San Antonio, and [[University of Nebraska]].

As a result of the [[Base Realignment and Closure|Base Realignment and Closure Commission]] (BRAC) 2005 recommendations, all military medical training has been consolidated at Fort Sam Houston. This consolidation concluded with the opening of the METC in 2011. The Navy moved its medical training from [[San Diego, California]]; [[Great Lakes, Illinois]]; and [[Portsmouth, Virginia]]. The Air Force moved its medical training from [[Sheppard Air Force Base]] in [[Wichita Falls, Texas]]. This increased the average student load and required additional support staff. The expansion in training has required construction approaching one billion dollars,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.army.mil/article/10881/metc_to_consolidate_enlisted_medical_training_at_fort_sam |title=METC To Consolidate Enlisted Medical Training At Fort Sam |website=www.army.mil |date=15 July 2008 |access-date=2019-05-27 |archive-date=2019-05-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190527181907/https://www.army.mil/article/10881/metc_to_consolidate_enlisted_medical_training_at_fort_sam |url-status=live }}</ref> a windfall of federal investment in Texas.